Peter Macon
Peter Macon is an American actor and voice-over artist who plays the role of Bortus the second officer aboard the ''The Orville''. Background Peter has played roles in Jonny Zero, Dexter, The Shield, Bosch, and Shameless, among other roles. He has also done several voice-over roles for franchises such as Twisted Metal, Cool Boarders, and Wolfenstein. He describes his childhood as one filled with Japanese anime and the movie Blade Runner, which he credits better prepared him for The Orville than his training in fine theater."THE ORVILLE Exclusive Seth MacFarlane & Cast Interviews - #SDCC 2017". JoBlo TV Show Trailers. July 23, 2017. The Orville Peter Macon auditioned for the role of Bortus and fell in love with the character. The audition scene was from the cold opening of Command Performance ''when Bortus requests leave from Captain Ed Mercer to nest his egg. Creator Seth MacFarlane texted Macon with the news that he was hired that same night."THE ORVILLE PODCAST EPISODE 3 - THE PETER MACON INTERVIEW". The Orville Podcast. Sept. 22, 2017. On August 19, 2016, Macon and J. Lee (John LaMarr) were announced as series regulars."Peter Macon &J Lee Join Seth MacFarlane's Sci-Fi Dramedy, 'Orville'". ''Shadow and Act. April 20, 2017. Macon comments that he empathizes with his character as dry-humored, unresponsive, but deeply emotional."Episode123 - LIVE from the Paley Fest Blue Carpet feat. The Orville & Mom casts". On the Mic with Tim Drake. March 27, 2018. As a father himself, the tension between Bortus and Klyden over the sex of their child, Topa, strikes a deeply personal chord with him. Further, because Bortus's family is on the ship, Macon intentionally brings the worries of a father and husband to his character; with each battle or near-death experience in the show, he wants to protects lives of his husband and son as well. Macon's Bortus costume is particularly complicated, itchy, and hot, which led to problems on set. Macon and Scott Grimes recall that on a particularly hot day of filming the first season, the wardrobe department slit a hole in the back of Macon's headpiece to circulate air and cool Macon down while he waited for his scenes. Macon lied on the couch of his trailer, not knowing that his trailer had become infested with ants and five or six ants crawled into his costume through the opening. When it came time to film Bortus, the wardrobe department re-sealed his headpiece with the ants in it. Macon was constantly irritated by the ants, and he began hitting himself in the face to crush the ants under the prosthetic. The ants continued to bother him for most of the day.Video by The Paley Center for Media. March 17, 2018. "That was pretty horrible," he reflected.Hughes, Mike. "Seth MacFarlane’s hopeful ‘The Orville’ ventures into space". Lansing State Journal. Sept. 8, 2018. One ant even crawled into his ear canal."The Orville Official Fan Podcast w/ Peter Macon (30)". Planetary Union Network. Feb. 13, 2019. Trivia *Macon has an Emmy for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance, won in 2002 for his work on Animated Tales of the World. Creator Seth MacFarlane won an Emmy in the same category two years prior. *He says his first reaction after reading the script of Command Performance ''was: "Damn, now I got to sit on an egg." *When MacFarlane texted him with news that he won the part of Bortus, Macon's reaction was, "How did you get my number?""SDCC 2017 Orville Peter Macon Interview". ''3BlackGeeks. Sept. 25, 2017. *Macon is so frequently in costume as Bortus on the set that craft services staff sometimes do not recognize the actor and attempt to bar him from food.Sisk, Angela. "The Orville Panel Comic Con 2018 Part One". YouTube. July 22, 2018. *After Bortus grew a mustache in ''A Happy Refrain'', makeup artist Garrett Immel made Macon a t-shirt that said "Mustache Ride," which Macon says his wife now wears around the house."The Orville Official Fan Podcast w/ Peter Macon (30)". Planetary Union Network. Feb. 13, 2019. *Macon was so frequently in his Bortus costume during Season 2 that co-star Jessica Szohr (Talla Keyali) did not see him out of costume for the first two-and-a-half months. Szohr recalls: Our trailers are right next to each other, so one day I’m leaving work and I went to say ‘bye’ and ... introduce myself, and he said “It’s Peter, I’m Bortus”, and I was like, “Wait, what? What do you mean?” I thought he was messing with me.''Heilbronn, Leora. "INTERVIEW: THE ORVILLE’S JESSICA SZOHR". ''Brief Take. March 21, 2019. * His favorite episode is ''Primal Urges''.Sun - Main Stage | NYCC 2019 | SYFY WIRE. SyFy Wire. Oct. 6, 2019. Interviews * September 2017: Interview with Planetary Union Network * February 2019: Interview with Planetary Union Network See also * ''The World of the Orville'', page 74 References Category:Main Cast